LINGUISTIC

This study investigates the syntactic features of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and linguistic profiling as found in The Hate U Give (2018) and Queen N’ Slim (2019). Using the dual framework of Chomsky’s Minimalist Program for syntactic analysis and Sociolinguistics for social context, the research qualitatively analyses selected scenes to identify the key AAVE structures and its contribution to stereotypical representations. The findings also establish AAVE as a rule-governed dialect while revealing that its portrayal in crime narratives often links it to criminality, thereby reinforcing stereotypes. The study concludes that media representations can perpetuate linguistic profiling but also hold the potential for more balanced depictions that affirm AAVE as a legitimate and authentic form of expression.